Dreamer's Dream
by CottageGhost
Summary: The Captain receives an unexpected gift from an unexpected source...


**_Dreamer's Dream_**

            "Daniel? Daniel, are you here?" Carolyn called softly as she came into the master bedroom, looking for the spirit of Captain Daniel Gregg.

            He appeared almost instantly by his telescope, his right arm draped casually over the instrument. "Your obedient servant, Madam," the Captain said with a smile, inclining his head courteously toward the beautiful woman smiling back at him.

            Carolyn waived a postcard between them. "Mail call."

            "Yes, I heard the lily-livered carrier pigeon leaving," the seaman retorted disdainfully, clearly unimpressed by their mailman. "He really should be more careful when he closes that gate; it all but fell off today." When she merely smiled at him, he frowned. "Are you even listening to me, Madam?"

            Smiling even wider, Carolyn shook her head at him. "Yes, I am, but _you're _obviously not listening to _me_." Stepping closer, she presented the postcard to him. "Here."

            The seaman looked at her incredulously. "Mrs. Muir! I am a gentleman; I gave you my word that I would respect your privacy, and respect it I will! I will not be coerced into reading your mail."

            Carolyn rolled her eyes. "Oh, for heaven's sake, Daniel. For an illusion, you can be awfully dense, sometimes." Once more, she presented the postcard to him. "It's addressed to you."

            For a moment, he just looked at her uncomprehendingly. Then he looked down at the card she was holding out to him and hesitantly took it from her. "To me?" He studied the picture on the card for a few moments before turning it over. "It's from Jonathan!" he exclaimed softly.

            "That's right," Carolyn said, smiling at his obvious delight. "We all got one; he sent them the day he arrived because he was afraid they wouldn't get here on time." Her smile faded somewhat as she spied the look on his face. "Is something wrong?"

            "No – no, my dear, everything's fine," he finally answered a little absently. "I'm just… This is something of a surprise, that's all." Regaining something of his usual composure, he tucked the card into his jacket pocket and bowed slightly to Carolyn. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some matters to attend to." He vanished, only to reappear in his wheelhouse a moment later. He moved to the loveseat and as he sat down, pulled the card out of his pocket.

            _Lillehammer, Norway_, it said in the lower corner, over a breathtaking vista of snow-covered peaks and a quaint little town tucked protectively into their midst. Turning the card over once more, Daniel ran a gentle finger over the boy's careful handwriting, smiling faintly as he read the words, flashing back to the day of his departure, along with the rest of the Schooner Bay scouts, for Norway, where a World Jamboree was being held. It had taken every penny from the cash reserve the little troop kept, plus the proceeds of yet another successful Amateur Night and a few other fundraising events to send them there, but everyone in town had thought it was a worthwhile goal. Who knew when those boys would get another chance like this, was the common justification for those efforts. So off they went, an ocean away, to enjoy the adventure of a lifetime.

            The Captain's smile vanished as he recalled how Carolyn, though happy for Jonathan, had bravely tried to hide her worry and her sadness at seeing him go. While the boy had been gone for longer periods of time when visiting with his grandparents in Philadelphia, he was still only a phone call away; this, while shorter, felt far more definitive and it worried her. Daniel had been forced to watch, powerless, unable to hold and comfort her, or to even hug the boy goodbye.

            He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, his head bowed. _Oh, woe is me, to witness what I cannot share!_ he thought bitterly, cursing his state for the thousandth time. Closing his eyes, he put his head in his hands and sighed.

            That's when the strange sensation began. It felt like a touch on the back of his neck, but not quite, and it was warm – almost as if he had stayed too long in the sun. For some reason, it felt familiar, but he couldn't say why. He also felt slightly dizzy, which was disconcerting to him, because that never happened – hadn't in at least a hundred years. As he tried to analyze the sensation, he felt another touch, on his cheek this time. "Are you all right?"

            Lifting his head and opening his eyes, Daniel saw that he was now sitting on the couch, down in the parlor. Turning in the direction of the voice, he found himself looking into Carolyn's soft, concern-filled green eyes. Rather than answer her right away, he took in his surroundings. There was no mistaking it: he was definitely in the cottage's parlor, sitting by the fireplace with his feet stretched out on the table in front of him. For some reason, he was wearing his white dress shirt and –

            – and Carolyn _was touching him_. The realization hit him like a tidal wave. Looking down once more into her eyes, he silently moved his left hand up to place it on top of hers, now resting gently against his left cheek. He couldn't stifle a tremulous sigh when his fingers brushed against the soft, warm flesh of hers.

            "Daniel?" Carolyn asked, her voice, though calm, now holding a definite edge.

            Wanting nothing so much as to laugh out loud, pick her up and twirl her around the room, Daniel reined himself in and settled for a reassuring smile. "I'm fine. Really," he added when he saw she didn't look convinced. For good measure, he took the hand he was touching and kissed its palm.

            Obviously reassured by the gesture, Carolyn smiled back at him and brought her hand down to let it rest against his chest, chuckling as she did so. "You must be exhausted! I know I am – what a day! The Seafearers' Games really did go well this year, didn't they?"

            _That explains the dress shirt_, Daniel thought, even as he caught sight of his uniform jacket hanging over the back of Carolyn's favorite chair, his sword lying carefully across it. Having no idea how the Games had actually unfolded, he simply nodded with a smile, finding he couldn't look away, her proximity at once mesmerizing and intoxicating.

            Sighing contentedly, Carolyn laid her head against his shoulder, making herself comfortable. "You don't mind my using you as a pillow, I hope?" she asked, her eyes closed, in a tone that said she didn't expect a negative answer to her question.

            He chuckled in spite of himself. "Of course not." Feeling a sudden surge of boldness, he bent his head close to hers and placed a soft kiss on her hair before resting his head on top of hers, enjoying her closeness. Finding the arrangement wasn't nearly as comfortable as he'd like, he jostled her gently to let her know he intended to move. Lifting the arm she had been leaning against, he brought it around her shoulders and drew her tenderly to him. "Come here; you'll be more comfortable that way."

            "My, aren't we cuddly, today," Carolyn said teasingly, but readily obeyed, her arms going around him and her head now resting right above his heart. She sighed happily as his own arms closed protectively around her. "I can think of worse ways to spend an afternoon," she murmured drowsily.

            "Or an eternity," was his quiet rejoinder as he looked down at her, hoarding all those feelings and memories for when this wonderful dream came to an end – for a dream, it had to be, and come to an end, it must.

            Moving within his grasp, Carolyn looked up at him, close to sleep already. "What was that?"

            He smiled down at her as he moved her hair gently out of her eyes. "I was only thinking that if this is a dream, I don't ever want to wake up." His smile turned sad. "Trouble is, I sleep the sleep of the dead; and from that sleep, what dreams may come?"

            "All the dreams you want, my love," Carolyn said with an enigmatic smile. Reaching up, she brought his head down, her lips resting a hairsbreadth from his. "Close your eyes and make a wish," she whispered against his lips.

            Silently, he obeyed, soon feeling the silky softness of her mouth moving slowly over his. He returned the caress tenderly, instantly losing all sense of his surroundings, his world now consisting of only the two of them and a sea of time, stretching before them without end…

            "Daniel?"

            Jerking his head up suddenly, the spirit of Gull Cottage found himself looking down into Carolyn's concerned features, her green eyes studying his face worriedly from where she was kneeling on the floor by the side of the loveseat. "Carolyn?" he asked a little huskily when he finally found his voice.

            "Are you all right?"

            Struck by the words, he paused to see if the scene would shift again. When it didn't, he breathed a small sigh. It _had_ all been a dream – but what a dream! And what memories. While he couldn't fathom how a ghost could even have a dream, he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. Smiling down at her, he nodded in answer to her question. "I'm fine. Really."

            Not entirely convinced but knowing she wasn't likely to get more out of him at this point, Carolyn got up and smiled back at him. "Good. Because the rest of the troops have asked that I convey an invitation to lunch. Will you join us?"

            He put a hand over his heart and raised a teasing eyebrow at her. "I, share a meal with three lovely ladies?" Getting up, Daniel moved to Carolyn's side and bowed gallantly to her. "Gladly, Madam. After you."

            As they exited the wheelhouse, neither of them noticed the petite woman who had appeared behind the loveseat, her well-worn hands resting on the back of it, the hood of her cloak pushed down to reveal a mane of tightly-curled red hair and sparkling grey eyes. The pale skin of her cheeks stretched slightly as a smile formed on her lips. "Happy Birthday, son," she said softly to their retreating backs before slowly fading into nothingness.

_THE END_


End file.
